SHILLONG: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma has said that flights to Southeast Asian countries from Shillong take less time than those to Delhi, and this potential can be used to expand horizons in the Central government's 'Act East' Policy.
Chief Minister Sangma on Thursday said, "A flight from Shillong to Dhaka is less than 30 minutes, Shillong to Bangkok would be nearly 1 hour 15 minutes and certain capitals of many countries in Southeast Asia are closer than our national capital. It takes two-and-a-half hours to travel to Delhi but it is shorter for us to travel from Shillong to Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Burma, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and many other locations. If we were to broaden our horizons to the entire Act East Zone, we would see the real potential in this entire exercise and can leverage this to our advantage to boost tourism, medical assistance, trade, logistics, and other major socio-economic activities."
"I would like to stress that we should not limit our perspective to the role of air connectivity within the northeastern states of India alone but look at its potential in the entire South Asian region, " he added.
The Chief Minister inaugurated the sixth Helicopter and Small Aircraft Summit in Shillong.
In his address, Chief Minister Sangma, thanking the Ministry of Civil Aviation for having chosen Shillong to host this summit, said it is a privilege to host an aviation summit in the state which is the first of its kind in the northeast.
"I would like to further endorse that Shillong is the right place to hold such a summit because our terrain requires the use of small aircraft and helicopters for air travel and other socio-economic activities, " he said.
Chief Minister Sangma also added that when it comes to connectivity and the issues that the northeastern region faces, particularly Meghalaya; air travel plays a very important role in achieving the wide gamut of goals that the state is striving towards.
He said, "I would like to stress that we should not limit our perspective to the role of air connectivity within the northeastern states of India alone but look at its potential in the entire South Asian region."
Concerning the development of aviation in Meghalaya, the Chief Minister said that the government is working aggressively to upgrade and optimise tourism, trade, health services, and other sectors and suggested stakeholders think on the lines of tourism circuits in the state to boost tourism.
He urged all stakeholders involved to support in their area of expertise from investors, technical experts, service providers, etc.
"The Government will handhold in the initial stages and provide continued support to bring about a convergence in all sectors to achieve the goal of an efficient and vibrant aviation ecosystem in the state and the region, " CM Sangma added.